121-507: The Ruger Gunsite Scout is a bolt-action rifle introduced by Sturm, Ruger & Co. at the 2011 SHOT Show . It is a re-designed scout rifle based on their Model 77 action and developed with Gunsite Training Center . To develop the Gunsite Scout, Ruger worked closely with Gunsite Academy in the development of the rifle, in order to meet the criteria of the modern scout rifle set forth by Jeff Cooper . The original variant of
242-464: A "cock on open" system. Although this bolt system has been rarely used in commercial sporting rifles (the Vostok brand target rifles being the most recognized) and has never been exported outside of Russia, although large numbers of military surplus Mosin–Nagant rifles have been sporterized for use as hunting rifles in the following years since the end of World War II. The Swing was developed in 1970 in
363-555: A bolt-action shotgun, albeit one designed to be attached to an M16 rifle or M4 carbine using an underbarrel mount (although with the standalone kit, the MASS can become a standalone weapon). Mossberg 12-gauge bolt-action shotguns were briefly popular in Australia after the 1997 changes to firearms laws , but the shotguns themselves were awkward to operate and had only a three-round magazine, thus offering no practical or real advantages over
484-842: A bulwark of the conservative Prussian royal government. In the 19th century, the Prussian Army fought successful wars against Kingdom of Denmark in the Second Schleswig War of 1864; versus the Austrian Empire ( Austria ) in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866; and the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871 with the Second French Empire of France , led by Emperor Napoleon III ; which allowing Prussia to lead and dominate in
605-410: A conventional double-barreled shotgun. Some pistols use a bolt-action system, although this is uncommon, and such examples are typically specialized hunting and target handguns. Most of the bolt-action designs use a rotating bolt (or "turn pull") design, which involves the shooter doing an upward "rotating" movement of the handle to unlock the bolt from the breech and cock the firing pin , followed by
726-475: A firing mechanism without a hammer , but there are some hammer-fired models, such as the Merkel Helix. Firearms using a hammer usually have a comparably longer lock time than hammerless mechanisms. In the sport of biathlon , because shooting speed is an important performance factor and semi-automatic guns are illegal for race use, straight pull actions are quite common and are used almost exclusively in
847-590: A gravity-operated tubular magazine in the stock. Another more well-known bolt-action repeating rifle was the Vetterli rifle of 1867 and the first bolt-action repeating rifle to use centerfire cartridges was the weapon designed by the Viennese gunsmith Ferdinand Fruwirth in 1871. Ultimately, the military turned to bolt-action rifles using a box magazine ; the first of its kind was the M1885 Remington–Lee , but
968-627: A metallic cartridge's powder charge – were invented in the 1860s as well, the Berdan and the Boxer systems. The United States purchased 900 Greene rifles (an under hammer, percussion capped, single-shot bolt-action that used paper cartridges and an ogival bore rifling system) in 1857, which saw service at the Battle of Antietam in 1862, during the American Civil War ; however, this weapon
1089-497: A minute, three times as fast as most armies. Punishments were draconian in nature, such as running the gauntlet, and despite the threat of hanging, many peasant conscripts deserted when they could. Uniforms and weaponry were standardized. Pigtails and, in those regiments which wore it, facial hair were to be of uniform length within a regiment; soldiers who could not adequately grow beards or moustaches were expected to paint an outline on their faces. Frederick William I reduced
1210-457: A mostly native-born army, Frederick II wanted to have a mostly foreign-born army, preferring to have native Prussians be taxpayers and producers. The Prussian Army consisted of 187,000 soldiers in 1776, 90,000 of whom were Prussian subjects in central and eastern Prussia. The remainder were foreign (both German and non-German) volunteers or conscripts. Frederick established the Gardes du Corps as
1331-594: A rearward "pull" to open the breech, extract the spent cartridge case, then reverse the whole process to chamber the next cartridge and relock the breech. There are four major turn bolt-action designs: the Remington M-700 , possibly the single most numerous produced rifle in history which is now also used as basis for most custom competition rifle actions, along with the Mauser system, the Lee–Enfield system, and
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#17327912752721452-478: A rotating bolt design. Johann Nicholas von Dreyse 's rifle of 1838 was accepted into service by Prussia in 1841, which was in turn developed into the Prussian Model in 1849. The design was a single shot breech-loader and had the now familiar arm sticking out from the side of the bolt, to turn and open the chamber . The entire reloading sequence was a more complex procedure than later designs, however, as
1573-509: A separate bolthead that rotates with the bolt and the bearing lugs, in contrast to the Mauser system where the bolthead is a non-removable part of the bolt. The Mosin–Nagant is also unlike the Lee–Enfield system where the bolthead remains stationary and the bolt body itself rotates. The Mosin–Nagant bolt is a somewhat complicated affair, but is extremely rugged and durable; like the Mauser, it uses
1694-717: A series of complicated formations and deployments hidden from the Austrians, the Prussians successfully struck their enemy's flank at Leuthen , with Friedrich once again directing the battle; the Austrian position in the province collapsed, resulting in a Prussian victory even more impressive than the one at Rossbach. Frederick's maneuvers were unsuccessful against the Russians in the bloody Battle of Zorndorf , however, and Prussian forces were crushed at Kunersdorf (1759). Like
1815-430: A single lethal shot from a safe distance. Target shooters favour single-shot bolt actions for their simplicity of design, reliability, and accuracy. Bolt-action shotguns are considered a rarity among modern firearms but were formerly a commonly used action for .410 entry-level shotguns, as well as for low-cost 12- gauge shotguns. The M26 Modular Accessory Shotgun System (MASS) is the most recent and advanced example of
1936-539: A specific weapon's type of action. However, both straight pull and rotating bolt rifles are types of bolt-action rifles. Lever-action and pump-action weapons must still operate the bolt, but they are usually grouped separately from bolt-actions that are operated by a handle directly attached to a rotating bolt. Early bolt-action designs, such as the Dreyse needle gun and the Mauser Model 1871 , locked by dropping
2057-538: A squadron of life guards . Disregarding the Pragmatic Sanction , Frederick began the Silesian Wars shortly after taking the throne. Although the inexperienced king retreated from the battle, the Prussian Army achieved victory over Austria in the Battle of Mollwitz (1741) under the leadership of Field Marshal Schwerin . The Prussian cavalry under Schulenburg had performed poorly at Mollwitz;
2178-568: A strong proponent of war game training for officers and introduced the breech-loading needle gun to troops, which allowed them to fire significantly faster than their adversaries. Moltke took advantage of the railroad , guiding the construction of rail lines within Prussia to likely places of deployment. Because modern armies had become too large and unwieldy for a single commander to control, Moltke supported multiple and independent smaller armies in concentric operations. Once one army encountered
2299-783: A trigger derived from the Finnish Mantari, the Swing was commercially successful, with the basic design reused in the Paramount, RPA Quadlock and Millenium rifles. The Vetterli rifle was the first bolt-action repeating rifle introduced by an army. It was used by the Swiss army from 1869 to circa 1890. Modified Vetterlis were also used by the Italian Army . Another notable design is the Norwegian Krag–Jørgensen , which
2420-481: A viable standing army , while King Frederick William I of Prussia (1688–1740, reigned 1713–1740), dramatically increased its size and improved its doctrines. King Frederick the Great (1712–1786, reigned 1740–1786), a formidable battle commander, led the disciplined Prussian troops to victory during the 18th century Silesian Wars and greatly increased the prestige and military reputation throughout Europe and among
2541-579: Is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by directly manipulating the bolt via a bolt handle , most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the firearm (as most users are right-handed ). The majority of bolt-action firearms are rifles , but there are also some variants of shotguns and handguns that are bolt-action. Bolt-action firearms are generally repeating firearms , but many single-shot designs are available particularly in shooting sports where single-shot firearms are mandated, such as most Olympic and ISSF rifle disciplines. From
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#17327912752722662-525: Is that it is usually loaded by hand, one round at a time, although a box-like device was made that could drop five rounds into the magazine, all at once via a stripper or en bloc clip. This made it slower to reload than other designs which used stripper or en bloc clips. Another historically important bolt-action system was the Gras system, used on the French Mle 1874 Gras rifle , Mle 1886 Lebel rifle (which
2783-413: Is the straight-pull mechanism, where no upward handle-turning is needed and the bolt unlocks automatically when the handle is pulled rearwards by the user's hand. The first bolt-action rifle was produced in 1824 by Johann Nikolaus von Dreyse , following work on breechloading rifles that dated to the 18th century. Von Dreyse would perfect his Nadelgewehr (Needle Rifle) by 1836, and it was adopted by
2904-487: Is the most common bolt-action system in the world, being in use in nearly all modern hunting rifles and the majority of military bolt-action rifles until the middle of the 20th century. The Mauser system is stronger than that of the Lee–Enfield system, due to two locking lugs just behind the bolt head, which make it better able to handle higher-pressure cartridges (i.e. magnum cartridges ). The 9.3×64mm Brenneke and 8×68mm S magnum rifle cartridge "families" were designed for
3025-652: The Zieten Hussars . For his great services at Hohenfriedberg Hans Karl von Winterfeldt , a good friend of King Frederick, rose to prominence. Austria allied with its traditional rival, France, in the Diplomatic Revolution (1756); Austria, France, and Russia were all aligned against Prussia. Frederick preemptively attacked his enemies with an army of 150,000, beginning the Seven Years' War . The Austrian Army had been reformed by Kaunitz , and
3146-589: The Junkers , the Prussian landed aristocracy , to serve in the army, Although initially reluctant about the army, the nobles eventually saw the officer corps as its natural profession. Until 1730 the common soldiers consisted largely of serfs recruited or impressed from Brandenburg , Pomerania and East Prussia , leading many to flee to neighboring countries. In order to halt this trend, Frederick William I divided Prussia into regimental cantons . Every youth
3267-452: The 1848 revolution , the king reluctantly agreed to the creation of a civilian defense force ( Bürgerwehr ) in his capital. A national assembly to write a constitution was convened for the first time, but its slowness allowed the reactionary forces to regroup. General Friedrich Graf von Wrangel led the reconquest of Berlin, which was supported by a middle class weary of a people's revolution. Prussian troops were subsequently used to suppress
3388-529: The Biathlon World Cup . The first company to make the straight pull action for .22 caliber was J. G. Anschütz ; Peter Fortner junior designed the "Fortner Action", which was incorporated into the Anschütz 1827 Fortner . The Fortner action is specifically the straight-pull ball bearing lock action, which features spring-loaded ball bearings on the side of the bolt which lock into a groove inside
3509-766: The French Revolution of 1789–1793, overthrowing of the French monarchy , execution of King Louis XVI , and the Royal House of Bourbon . The continuing strife spilling over French borders of the following French Revolutionary Wars (1792-1802), and then the Napoleonic Wars , and rise of the First French Empire of France under Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821), defeated Prussia in the War of
3630-470: The Krümpersystem , by which companies replaced 3–5 men monthly, allowing up to 60 extra men to be trained annually per company. This system granted the army a larger reserve of 30,000–150,000 extra troops. The Krümpersystem was also the beginning of short-term (3 years') compulsory service in Prussia, as opposed to the long-term (5 to 10 years') conscription previously used since the 1650s. Because
3751-563: The Mosin–Nagant system. All four differ in the way the bolt fits into the receiver, how the bolt rotates as it is being operated, the number of locking lugs holding the bolt in place as the gun is fired, and whether the action is cocked on the opening of the bolt (as in both the Mauser system and the Mosin Nagant system) or the closing of the bolt (as in the Lee–Enfield system). The vast majority of modern bolt-action rifles were made for
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3872-472: The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth . Despite having expelled Swedish forces from the territory, the elector did not acquire Vorpommern in the 1660 Treaty of Oliva , as the balance of power had been restored. In the early 1670s, Frederick William supported Imperial attempts to reclaim Alsace and counter the expansion of Louis XIV of France. Swedish troops invaded Brandenburg in 1674 while
3993-584: The Prussian Army in 1841. While it saw limited service in the German Revolutions of 1848 , it was not fielded widely until the 1864 victory over Denmark . In 1850 a metallic centerfire bolt-action breechloader was patented by Béatus Beringer. In 1852 another metallic centerfire bolt-action breechloader was patented by Joseph Needham and improved upon in 1862 with another patent. Two different systems for primers –the mechanism to ignite
4114-711: The Unification of Germany , establishing the German Empire in 1871. The Royal Prussian Army formed the core of the new larger Imperial German Army , which was replaced by the Reichswehr after the defeat in World War I ( 1914 - 1918 ), in the First German Republic (Weimar Republic) during the 1920s and early 1930s . The army of Prussia grew out of the united armed forces created during
4235-589: The War of the Spanish Succession . His friend, Leopold I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau , served as the royal drill sergeant for the Prussian Army. Leopold introduced the iron ramrod , increasing Prussian firepower, and the slow march, or goose-step . He also vastly increased the role of music in the Army, dedicating a large number of musician-troops, especially drummers and fifers, to use music for increasing morale in battle. The usefulness of music in battles
4356-572: The army of the Kingdom of Prussia . It became vital to the development of Prussia as a European political and military power and within Germany . The Royal Prussian Army had its roots in the core mercenary forces of Brandenburg-Prussia during the long religious strife of the Thirty Years' War of 1618 – 1648 . Elector Frederick William (1620–1688, reigned 1640–1688), developed it into
4477-542: The cuirassiers , originally trained on heavy horses, were subsequently retrained on more maneuverable, lighter horses. The hussars and dragoons of General Zieten were also expanded. These changes led to a Prussian victory at Chotusitz (1742) in Bohemia , and Austria conceded Silesia to Frederick with the Peace of Breslau. In September 1743, Frederick held the first fall maneuver ( Herbstübung ). The different branches of
4598-570: The firing pin had to be independently primed and activated, and the lever was used only to move the bolt. [REDACTED] Media related to Bolt action (firearms) at Wikimedia Commons Prussian Army Seven Years' War War of the Bavarian Succession French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars The Royal Prussian Army (1701–1919, German : Königlich Preußische Armee ) served as
4719-873: The rate of fire of the gun. In 1993, the German Blaser company introduced the Blaser R93 , a new straight pull action where locking is achieved by a series of concentric "claws" that protrude/retract from the bolthead, a design that is referred to as Radialbundverschluss ("radial connection"). As of 2017 the Rifle Shooter magazine listed its successor Blaser R8 as one of the three most popular straight pull rifles together with Merkel Helix and Browning Maral. Some other notable modern straight pull rifles are made by Beretta , C.G. Haenel , Chapuis , Heym , Lynx , Rößler , Savage Arms , Strasser, and Steel Action. Most straight bolt rifles have
4840-424: The striker within the bolt (either on opening or closing of the bolt depending on the gun design) and engages it against the sear . When the bolt is returned to the forward position, a new cartridge (if available) is pushed out of the magazine and into the barrel chamber , and finally the breech is closed tight by rotating the handle down so the bolt head relocks on the receiver. A less common bolt-action type
4961-670: The 1656 Battle of Warsaw , during the Northern Wars . Observers were impressed with the discipline of the Brandenburger troops, as well as their treatment of civilians, which was considered more humane than that of their allies, the Swedish Army . Hohenzollern success enabled Frederick William to assume full sovereignty over the Duchy of Prussia in the 1657 Treaty of Wehlau , by which Brandenburg-Prussia allied itself with
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5082-484: The 1806 defeats, the reformers wanted to cultivate patriotism within the country. Stein's reforms abolished serfdom in 1807 and initiated local city government in 1808. The generals of the army were completely overhauled – of the 143 Prussian generals in 1806, only Blücher and Tauentzien remained by the Sixth Coalition ; many were allowed to redeem their reputations in the war of 1813. The officer corps
5203-472: The Army tested new formations and tactics; the fall maneuvers became annual traditions of the Prussian Army. Austria tried to reclaim Silesia in the Second Silesian War. Although successful in outmaneuvering Frederick in 1744, the Austrians were crushed by the king himself in the Battle of Hohenfriedberg and the Battle of Soor (1745). The Prussian cavalry excelled during the battle, especially
5324-488: The Battles of Leipzig (1813) and Waterloo (1815). Later staff officers were impressed with the simultaneous operations of separate groups of the Prussian Army. The Iron Cross was introduced as a military decoration by King Frederick William III in 1813. After the publication of his book On War , Clausewitz became a widely studied philosopher of war. The Prussian General Staff , which developed out of meetings of
5445-605: The Fourth Coalition in 1806–1807. However, under the subsequent leadership of Gerhard von Scharnhorst (1755-1814), Prussian military reformers began modernizing the Royal Prussian Army, which contributed greatly to the later final defeat and exile of Napoleon during the War of the Sixth Coalition . Conservatives halted some of the reforms, however, and the Prussian Army subsequently became
5566-593: The Great Elector with his senior officers and the informal meeting of the Napoleonic Era reformers, was formally created in 1814. In the same year Boyen and Grolman drafted a law for universal conscription, by which men would successively serve in the standing army, the Landwehr and the local Landsturm until the age of 39. Troops of the 156,000-strong standing army served for three years and were in
5687-531: The M10 and No 4 Mk IV rifles manufactured by Australian International Arms. Rifle Factory Ishapore of India manufactures a hunting and sporting rifle chambered in .315 which also employs the Lee Enfield action. The Mosin–Nagant action, created in 1891 and named after the designers Sergei Mosin and Léon Nagant , differs significantly from the Mauser and Lee–Enfield bolt-action designs. The Mosin–Nagant design has
5808-529: The Mauser M 98 bolt-action. A novel safety feature was the introduction of a third locking lug present at the rear of the bolt that normally did not lock the bolt, since it would introduce asymmetrical locking forces. The Mauser system features "cock on opening", meaning the upward rotation of the bolt when the rifle is opened cocks the action. A drawback of the Mauser M 98 system is that it cannot be cheaply mass-produced very easily. Many Mauser M 98-inspired derivatives feature technical alterations, such as omitting
5929-525: The Prussian Army during his tenure. He expanded the General Staff, creating peacetime subdivisions such as the Mobilization, Geographical-Statistical and Military History Sections. In 1869, he issued a handbook for warfare on the operational level, Instructions for Large Unit Commanders , writing, "The modern conduct of war is marked by the striving for a great and rapid decision". Moltke was
6050-399: The Prussian state, General Gerhard von Scharnhorst began to reform the military. He led a Military Reorganization Committee, which included Generals August von Gneisenau , Karl von Grolman , and Hermann von Boyen as well as the civilian vom Steinen. Prussian military officer, Carl von Clausewitz assisted with the reorganization as well. Dismayed by the populace's indifferent reaction to
6171-617: The Swedish invaders during the " Great Sleigh Drive " of 1678–79; Thomas Carlyle compared the wintertime Swedish retreat to that of Napoleon from Moscow. Frederick William built the Hohenzollern army up to a peacetime size of 7,000 and a wartime size of 15,000–30,000. Its success in battle against Sweden and Poland increased Brandenburg-Prussia's prestige, while also allowing the Great Elector to pursue absolutist policies against estates and towns. In his political testament of 1667,
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#17327912752726292-614: The United Kingdom as a purpose-built target rifle for use in NRA competition. Fullbore target rifle competitions historically used accurised examples of the prevailing service rifle, but it was felt these had reached the end of their development potential. The Swing bolt featured four lugs on the bolt head, at 45 degrees when closed - splitting the difference between the vertically locking Mauser and horizontally locking Enfield bolt designs. Supplied with Schultz & Larsen barrels and
6413-521: The additional funds. Although the Landtag was opposed to these actions, William maintained the new regiments with the guidance of Manteuffel . The liberal and middle-class Landwehr was thus subordinated in favor of the regular army, which was composed mostly of peasantry loyal to the Hohenzollern monarchy and conservative Junkers . Moltke the Elder , Chief of the General Staff from 1857–88, modernized
6534-402: The aged Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick , and the army began to degrade in quality. Led by veterans of the Silesian Wars, the Prussian Army was ill-equipped to deal with Revolutionary France . The officers retained the same training, tactics and weaponry used by Frederick the Great some forty years earlier. In comparison, the French Revolutionary Army , especially under Napoleon ,
6655-408: The army from 39,000 to 45,000 troops; by the end of Frederick William I's reign, the army had doubled in size. The General War Commissary, responsible for the army and revenue, was removed from interference by the estates and placed strictly under the control of officials appointed by the king. Frederick William I restricted enrollment in the officer corps to Germans of noble descent and compelled
6776-414: The army's size during peacetime, but the elector avoided their demands through political concessions , evasion and economy. In the 1653 Brandenburg Recess between Frederick William and the estates of Brandenburg, the nobility provided the sovereign with 530,000 thalers in return for affirmation of their privileges. The Junkers thus cemented their political power at the expense of the peasantry. Once
6897-460: The army—while the populace had risen from 10 million to 18 million since 1820, the annual army recruits had remained 40,000. Although Bonin opposed Roon's desired weakening of the Landwehr , William I was alarmed by the nationalistic Second Italian War of Independence . Bonin resigned as Minister of War and was replaced with Roon. The government submitted Roon's army reform bill in February 1860. The Landtag opposed many of its provisions, especially
7018-485: The arts in imitation of Versailles , the new king recognized that the importance of the army and continued its expansion to 40,000 men. Frederick I was succeeded by his son, Frederick William I (1713–1740), the "Soldier-King" obsessed with the army and achieving self-sufficiency for his country. The new king dismissed most of the artisans from his father's court and granted military officers precedence over court officials. Ambitious and intelligent young men began to enter
7139-472: The bolt ahead of the lugs may flex on firing which, although a safety advantage with repeated firing over time, this may lead to a stretched receiver and excessive headspacing, which if perceived as a problem can be remedied by changing the removable bolt head to a larger sized one (the Lee–Enfield bolt manufacture involved a mass production method where at final assembly the bolt body was fitted with one of three standard size bolt heads for correct headspace ). In
7260-462: The bolt cocks the action. This enables a shooter to keep eyes on sights and targets uninterrupted when cycling the bolt. The ability of the bolt to flex between the lugs and chamber, which also keeps the shooter safer in case of a catastrophic chamber overpressure failure. The disadvantage of the rearward-located bolt lugs is that a larger part of the receiver, between chamber and lugs, must be made stronger and heavier to resist stretching forces. Also,
7381-409: The bolt handle or bolt guide rib into a notch in the receiver , this method is still used in .22 rimfire rifles. The most common locking method is a rotating bolt with two lugs on the bolt head, which was used by the Lebel Model 1886 rifle , Model 1888 Commission Rifle , Mauser M 98 , Mosin–Nagant and most bolt-action rifles. The Lee–Enfield has a lug and guide rib, which lock on the rear end of
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#17327912752727502-407: The bolt in addition to the linear motions to perform chambering and primary extraction . The bolt locking of a straight pull action is achieved differently without needing manual inputs, therefore the entire operating cycle needs the shooter to perform only two movements (pull back and push forward), instead of four movements (rotate up, pull back, push forward, and rotate down), this greatly increases
7623-432: The bolt in place. The operation can be done via a rotating bolt , a lever, cam action, a locking piece, or a number of systems. Straight pull designs have seen a great deal of use, though manual turn bolt designs are what is most commonly thought of in reference to a bolt-action design due to the type ubiquity. As a result, the bolt-action term is often reserved for more modern types of rotating bolt designs when talking about
7744-409: The bolt into the receiver. The bolt knob is the part of the bolt handle that the user grips when loading and reloading the firearm and thereby acts as a cocking handle . On many older firearms, the bolt knob is welded to the bolt handle, and as such becoming an integral part of the bolt handle itself. On many newer firearms, the bolt knob is instead threaded onto the handle, allowing the user to change
7865-420: The bolt's housing. With the new design came a new dry fire method; instead of the bolt being turned up slightly, the action is locked back to catch the firing pin. The action was later used in the centre-fire Heym SR 30 . Typically, the bolt consists of a tube of metal inside of which the firing mechanism is housed, and which has at the front or rear of the tube several metal knobs, or "lugs", which serve to lock
7986-448: The bulk of the elector's forces were in Franconia's winter quarters. In 1675 Frederick William marched his troops northward and surrounded Wrangel 's troops. The elector achieved his greatest victory in the Battle of Fehrbellin ; although a minor battle, it brought fame to the Brandenburg-Prussian Army and gave Frederick William the nickname "the Great Elector". After Sweden invaded Prussia in late 1678, Frederick William's forces expelled
8107-408: The cautious king refused to support a new Prussian war, however, Schill led his hussar regiment against the occupying French, expecting to provoke a national uprising. The king considered Schill a mutineer , and the major's rebellion was crushed at Stralsund by French allies. The Treaty of Paris (24 February 1812) forced Prussia to provide 20,000 troops to Napoleon's Grande Armée , first under
8228-425: The commercial market post-war, numbering in the tens of millions by Remington in the unique, and most accurate Model 700, two of the others use the Mauser system, with other designs such as the Lee–Enfield system and the Mosin Nagant system, of only limited usage. The Mauser bolt-action system is based on 19th-century Mauser bolt-action rifle designs and was finalized in the Gewehr 98 designed by Paul Mauser . It
8349-408: The defeats of Jena-Auerstedt. Prussia submitted to major territorial losses, a standing army of only 42,000 men, and an alliance with France in the Treaty of Tilsit (1807). The defeat of the disorganized army shocked the Prussian establishment, which had largely felt invincible after the Frederician victories. While Baron vom Stein and Prime Minister Karl August von Hardenberg began modernizing
8470-413: The design's inherent potential for superior accuracy and precision , as well as ruggedness and reliability compared to self-loading designs. Most bolt-action firearms use a rotating bolt operation, where the handle must first be rotated upward to unlock the bolt from the receiver , then pulled back to open the breech and allowing any spent cartridge case to be extracted and ejected. This also cocks
8591-412: The developing army numbered only 5,500 troops, including 500 musketeers in Frederick William's bodyguard. The elector's confidant Johann von Norprath recruited forces in the Duchy of Cleves and organized an army of 3,000 Dutch and German soldiers in the Rhineland by 1646. Garrisons were also slowly augmented in Brandenburg and the Duchy of Prussia . Frederick William sought assistance from France,
8712-428: The elector and his army were strong enough, Frederick William was able to suppress the estates of Cleves , Mark and Prussia . Frederick William attempted to professionalize his soldiers during a time when mercenaries were the norm. In addition to individually creating regiments and appointing colonels, the elector imposed harsh punishments for transgressions, such as punishing by hanging for looting , and running
8833-590: The elector wrote, "Alliances, to be sure, are good, but forces of one's own still better. Upon them one can rely with more security, and a lord is of no consideration if he does not have means and troops of his own". The growing power of the Hohenzollerns in Berlin led Frederick William's son and successor, Elector Frederick III (1688–1713), to proclaim the Kingdom of Prussia with himself as King Frederick I in 1701. Although he emphasized Baroque opulence and
8954-540: The enemy and pinned it down, a second army would arrive and attack the enemy's flank or rear. He advocated a Kesselschlacht , or battle of encirclement. It was in Moltke's Instructions for Large Unit Commanders and his concept of separated armies that we begin to see the emergence of modern German doctrine. The system of moving units separately and concentrating as an army before a battle resulted in more efficient supply and lower vulnerability to modern firepower. To enable
9075-451: The existing bolt handle. These are often made of either rubber or plastic. Most bolt-action firearms are fed by an internal magazine loaded by hand, by en bloc , or by stripper clips , though a number of designs have had a detachable magazine or independent magazine, or even no magazine at all, thus requiring that each round be independently loaded. Generally, the magazine capacity is limited to between two and ten rounds, as it can permit
9196-499: The famous quote of Voltaire : Where some states have an army, the Prussian Army has a state. The army was maintained with a budget of five million thalers (out of a total state budget of seven million thalers). Frederick William I was succeeded by his son, Frederick II (1740–86). Frederick immediately disbanded the expensive Potsdam Giants and used their funding to create seven new regiments and 10,000 troops. The new king also added sixteen battalions, five squadrons of hussars , and
9317-414: The faster rate of fire that all semi-automatic rifle alternatives allow. There are, however, many semi-automatic rifle designs used especially in the designated marksman role. Today, bolt-action rifles are chiefly used as hunting and target rifles. These rifles can be used to hunt anything from vermin to deer and to large game , especially big game caught on a safari , as they are adequate to deliver
9438-478: The first to be generally adopted was the British 1888 Lee–Metford . World War I marked the height of the bolt-action rifle's use, with all of the nations in that war fielding troops armed with various bolt-action designs. During the buildup prior to World War II , the military bolt-action rifle began to be superseded by semi-automatic rifles and later fully automatic rifles , though bolt-action rifles remained
9559-576: The gauntlet for desertion . Acts of violence by officers against civilians resulted in decommission for a year. He developed a cadet institution for the nobility; although the upper class was resistant to the idea in the short term, the integration of the nobility into the officer corps allied them with the Hohenzollern monarchy in the long term. Field Marshals of Brandenburg-Prussia included Derfflinger , John George II , Spaen and Sparr . The elector's troops traditionally were organized into disconnected provincial forces. In 1655, Frederick William began
9680-459: The hodge-podge array of various German states kingdoms, duchies, principalities and free cities of the leadership in the East of the rising Kingdom of Prussia. However the Prussian Army had become outdated and under-resourced decades later by the beginning of the late 18th century into the early 19th century era to meet the challenge from the west beginning in the political and social upheaval in
9801-474: The improvements showed in their success over Prussia at Kolín . Frederick achieved one of his greatest victories, however, at Rossbach , where the Prussian cavalry of Friedrich Wilhelm von Seydlitz smashed a larger Franco-Imperial army with minimal casualties, despite being outnumbered two to one. Frederick then rushed eastward to Silesia, where Austria had defeated the Prussian army under the Duke of Bevern. After
9922-613: The integration of the infantry, cavalry, artillery, and engineers (sappers) through combined arms , as opposed to their previous independent states. Equipment and tactics were updated in respect to the Napoleonic campaigns. The field manual issued by Yorck in 1812 emphasized combined arms and faster marching speeds. In 1813, Scharnhorst succeeded in attaching a chief of staff trained at the academy to each field commander. Some reforms were opposed by Frederician traditionalists, such as Yorck, who felt that middle class officers would erode
10043-711: The late 19th century all the way through both World Wars , bolt-action rifles were the standard infantry service weapons for most of the world's military forces, with the exception of the United States Armed Forces , who used the M1 Garand Semi-automatic rifle . In modern military and law enforcement after the Second World War, bolt-action firearms have been largely replaced by semi-automatic and selective-fire firearms, and have remained only as sniper rifles due to
10164-592: The leadership of Grawert and then under Yorck. The French occupation of Prussia was reaffirmed, and 300 demoralized Prussian officers resigned in protest. During Napoleon's retreat from Russia in 1812, Yorck independently signed the Convention of Tauroggen with Russia, breaking the Franco-Prussian alliance. Stein arrived in East Prussia and led the raising of a Landwehr , or militia to defend
10285-471: The liberals' plan to unite Germany through Prussia encouraged reactionary forces. In 1856 during peacetime Prussian Army consisted of 86,436 infantrymen, 152 cavalry squadrons and 9 artillery regiments. After Frederick William IV suffered a stroke, his brother William I became regent (1858) and king (1861–88). He desired to reform the army, which conservatives such as Roon considered to have degraded since 1820 because of liberalism. The king wanted to expand
10406-468: The magazine to be flush with the bottom of the rifle, reduce the weight, or prevent mud and dirt from entering. A number of bolt-actions have a tube magazine , such as along the length of the barrel. In weapons other than large rifles, such as pistols and cannons , there were some manually operated breech-loading weapons. However, the Dreyse Needle fire rifle was the first breech loader to use
10527-575: The metallic cartridge bolt-action Gras rifle in 1874. European armies continued to develop bolt-action rifles through the latter half of the 19th century, first adopting tubular magazines as on the Kropatschek rifle and the Lebel rifle . The first bolt-action repeating rifle was patented in Britain in 1855 by an unidentified inventor through the patent agent Auguste Edouard Loradoux Bellford using
10648-468: The military instead of law and administration. Conscription among the peasantry was more firmly enforced, based on the Swedish model. Frederick William I wore his simple blue military uniform at court, a style henceforth imitated by the rest of the Prussian court and his royal successors. In Prussia, pigtails replaced the full-bottomed wigs common at most German courts. Frederick William I had begun his military innovations in his Kronprinz regiment during
10769-422: The more democratic Landwehr . Frederick William III reduced the militia's size and placed it under the control of the regular army in 1819, leading to the resignations of Boyen and Grolman and the ending of the reform movement. Boyen's ideal of an enlightened citizen soldier was replaced with the idea of a professional military separate or alienated from civilian society. By the middle of the 19th century, Prussia
10890-427: The occupying French prohibited the Prussians from forming divisions, the Prussian Army was divided into six brigades , each consisting of seven to eight infantry battalions and twelve squadrons of cavalry. The combined brigades were supplemented with three brigades of artillery. Corporal punishment was by and large abolished, while soldiers were trained in the field and in tirailleur tactics. Scharnhorst promoted
11011-845: The original bolt knob for an aftermarket one, either for aesthetical reasons, achieving better grip or similar. The type of threads used vary between firearms. European firearms often use either M6 1 or M8 1.25 threads, for example M6 is used on the SIG Sauer 200 STR , Blaser R93 , Blaser R8 , CZ 457 and Bergara rifles, while M8 is used on the Sako TRG and SIG Sauer 404 . Many American firearms instead use 1/4" 28 TPI (6.35 0.907 mm) or 5/16" 24 TPI (7.9375 1.058 mm) threads. Some other thread types are also used, for example, No. 10 32 TPI (4.826 0.794 mm) as used by Mausingfield. There also exists aftermarket slip-on bolt handle covers which are mounted without having to remove
11132-473: The primary weapon of most of the combatants for the duration of the war; and many American units, especially the USMC , used bolt-action M1903 Springfield rifles until sufficient numbers of M1 Garand rifles were made available. The bolt-action is still common today among many sniper rifles , as the design has the potential for superior accuracy, reliability, reduced weight, and the ability to control loading over
11253-444: The privileges of the aristocratic officer corps and promote the ideas of the French Revolution . The army reform movement was cut short by Scharnhorst's death in 1813. The shift to a more democratic and middle-class military began to lose momentum in the face of the reactionary government. The reformers and much of the public called for Frederick William III to ally with the Austrian Empire in its 1809 campaign against France. When
11374-513: The province. With Prussia's joining of the Sixth Coalition out of his hands, Frederick William III quickly began to mobilize the army, and the East Prussian Landwehr was duplicated in the rest of the country. In comparison to 1806, the Prussian populace, especially the middle class, was supportive of the war, and thousands of volunteers joined the army. Prussian troops under the leadership of Blücher and Gneisenau proved vital at
11495-427: The reign of Elector Frederick William of Brandenburg (1640–1688). Hohenzollern Brandenburg-Prussia had primarily relied upon Landsknecht mercenaries during the Thirty Years' War , in which Brandenburg was devastated. Swedish and Imperial forces occupied the country. In the spring of 1644, Frederick William started building a standing army through conscription to better defend his state. By 1643–44,
11616-514: The reserves for two, while militiamen of the 163,000-strong Landwehr served a few weeks annually for seven years. Boyen and Blücher strongly supported the civilian army of the Landwehr , which was to unite military and civilian society, as an equal to the standing army. During a constitutional crisis in 1819, Frederick William III recognized Prussia's adherence to the anti-revolutionary Carlsbad Decrees . Conservative forces within Prussia, such as Wittgenstein , remained opposed to conscription and
11737-492: The results after the Battle of Hochkirch , though, in which the Prussians had to withdraw, the Austrian and Russian Allies did not follow up on their victory. Within the week, the Russian force began a withdrawal eastward; Austrians retreated southward. Prussia was ill-suited for lengthy wars, and a Prussian collapse seemed imminent on account of casualties and lack of resources, but after two more years of campaigning, Frederick
11858-540: The revolution in many other German cities. At the end of 1848, Frederick William finally issued the Constitution of the Kingdom of Prussia . The liberal opposition secured the creation of a parliament , but the constitution was largely a conservative document reaffirming the monarchy's predominance. The army was a praetorian guard outside of the constitution, subject only to the king. The Prussian Minister of War
11979-448: The rifle features a matte black receiver, a 16.5-inch cold-hammer forged alloy steel barrel, a forward mounted picatinny rail, a 3, 5, or 10-round detachable AICS-style box magazine, a flash suppressor, an adjustable ghost-ring rear iron sight, a polymer trigger guard, and a black laminate wood stock with length-of-pull spacers. In addition, a model chambered in 5.56×45mm NATO was announced in 2014. Bolt action Bolt-action
12100-508: The royal guard. Many troops were disloyal, such as mercenaries or those acquired through impressment, while troops recruited from the canton system displayed strong regional, and nascent national pride. During the Seven Years' War, the elite regiments of the army were almost entirely composed of native Prussians. By the end of Frederick's reign, the army had become an integral part of Prussian society. It numbered 200,000 soldiers, making it
12221-551: The size of Frederick I's gaudy royal guard to a single regiment, a troop of taller-than-average soldiers known as the Potsdam Giants or more commonly the Lange Kerls (long fellows), which he privately funded. The cavalry was reorganized into 55 squadrons of 150 horses; the infantry was turned into 50 battalions (25 regiments ); and the artillery consisted of two battalions. These changes allowed him to increase
12342-521: The terrain, which could not be used to an advantage. The Russians had arrived early and fortified themselves on the high ground. Frederick used oblique order to great success at Hohenfriedberg and later Leuthen. After a few initial volley fire , the infantry was to advance quickly for a bayonet charge. The Prussian cavalry was to attack as a large formation with swords before the opposing cavalry could attack. The first garrison began construction in Berlin in 1764. While Frederick William I wanted to have
12463-597: The third locking lug and feature a "cock on closing" operation. The Lee–Enfield bolt-action system was introduced in 1889 with the Lee–Metford and later Lee–Enfield rifles (the bolt system is named after the designer James Paris Lee and the barrel rifling after the Royal Small Arms Factory in the London Borough of Enfield ), and is a "cock on closing" action in which the forward thrust of
12584-549: The third safety locking lug, to simplify production. The controlled-feed on the Mauser M 98 bolt-action system is simple, strong, safe, and well-thought-out design that has inspired other military and sporting rifle designs that became available during the 20th century, including the: Versions of the Mauser action designed prior to the Gewehr 98's introduction, such as that of the Swedish Mauser rifles and carbines, lack
12705-590: The third-largest in Europe after the armies of Russia and Austria. The social classes were all expected to serve the state and its military — the nobility led the army, the middle class supplied the army, and the peasants composed the army. Minister Friedrich von Schrötter remarked that, "Prussia was not a country with an army, but an army with a country". Frederick the Great's successor, his nephew Frederick William II (1786–97), relaxed conditions in Prussia and had little interest in war. He delegated responsibility to
12826-472: The traditional rival of Habsburg Austria , and began receiving French subsidies. He based his reforms on those of Louvois , the War Minister of King Louis XIV . The growth of his army allowed Frederick William to achieve considerable territorial acquisitions in the 1648 Treaty of Westphalia , despite Brandenburg's relative lack of success during the war. The provincial estates desired a reduction in
12947-470: The unification of the various detachments by placing them under Sparr's overall command. Unification also increased through the appointment of Generalkriegskommissar Platen as head of supplies. These measures decreased the authority of the primarily mercenary colonels who had been so prominent during the Thirty Years' War. Brandenburg-Prussia's new army survived its trial by fire through victory in
13068-422: The weakening of the Landwehr , and proposed a revised bill that did away with many of the government's desired reforms. The Finance Minister, Patow , abruptly withdrew the bill on 5 May and instead simply requested a provisional budgetary increase of 9 million thalers, which was granted. William had already begun creating 'combined regiments' to replace the Landwehr , a process which increased after Patow acquired
13189-406: The years leading up to World War II, the Lee–Enfield bolt system was used in numerous commercial sporting and hunting rifles manufactured by such firms in the United Kingdom as BSA, LSA, and Parker–Hale, as well as by SAF Lithgow in Australia. Vast numbers of ex-military SMLE Mk III rifles were sporterised post WWII to create cheap, effective hunting rifles, and the Lee–Enfield bolt system is used in
13310-404: Was decisively defeated in the battles of Saalfeld , Jena and Auerstedt in 1806 and Napoleon occupied Berlin . The Prussians' famed discipline collapsed and led to widescale surrendering among infantry, cavalry and garrisons. While some Prussian commanders acquitted themselves well, such as L'Estocq at Eylau , Gneisenau at Kolberg , and Blücher at Lübeck , they were not enough to reverse
13431-597: Was developing new methods of organization, supply, mobility, and command. Prussia withdrew from the First Coalition in the Peace of Basel (1795), ceding the Rhenish territories to France. Upon Frederick William II's death in 1797, the state was bankrupt and the army outdated. He was succeeded by his son, Frederick William III (1797–1840), who involved Prussia in the disastrous Fourth Coalition . The Prussian Army
13552-423: Was first recognized in the Thirty Years' War by the Brandenburger and Swedish armies. The new king trained and drilled the army relentlessly, focusing on their flintlock muskets' firing speed and formation maneuverability. The changes gave the army flexibility, precision, and a rate of fire that was mostly unequalled for that period. Through drilling and the iron ramrod, each soldier was expected to fire six times
13673-459: Was reopened to the middle class in 1808, while advancement into the higher ranks became based on education. King Frederick William III created the War Ministry in 1809, and Scharnhorst founded an officers training school, the later Prussian War Academy , in Berlin in 1810. Scharnhorst advocated adopting the levée en masse , the universal military conscription used by France. He created
13794-444: Was required to quarter soldiers and enroll in the bureaucracy. Because the excise tax was only applied in towns, the king was reluctant to engage in war, as deployment of his expensive army in foreign lands would have deprived him of taxes from the town-based military. By the end of Frederick William I's reign, Prussia had the fourth-largest army (80,000 soldiers) in Europe but was twelfth in population size (2.5 million). This led to
13915-399: Was required to serve as a soldier in these recruitment districts for three months each year; this met agrarian needs and added troops to bolster the regular ranks. The General Directory which developed during Frederick William I's reign continued the absolutist tendencies of his grandfather and collected the increased taxes necessary for the expanded military. The middle class of the towns
14036-633: Was saved by the " Miracle of the House of Brandenburg " — the Russian exit from the war after the sudden death of Empress Elizabeth in 1762. Prussian control of Silesia was confirmed in the Treaty of Hubertusburg (1763). Severe casualties had led the king to admit middle class officers during the war, but this trend was reversed afterwards. The offensive-minded Frederick advocated the oblique order of battle, which required considerable discipline and mobility. This tactic failed at Kunersdorf primarily because of
14157-491: Was seen by many German liberals as the country best-suited to unify the many German states , but the conservative government used the army to repress liberal and democratic tendencies during the 1830s and 1840s. Liberals resented the usage of the army in essentially police actions. King Frederick William IV (1840–61) initially appeared to be a liberal ruler, but he was opposed to issuing the written constitution called for by reformers. When barricades were raised in Berlin during
14278-467: Was the first to introduce ammunition loaded with nitrocellulose-based smokeless powder ), and the Berthier series of rifles. Straight-pull bolt-actions differ from conventional turn-pull bolt-action mechanisms in that the bolt can be cycled back and forward without rotating the handle and thus only a linear motion is required, as opposed to a traditional bolt-action, where the user has to axially rotate
14399-599: Was the only soldier required to swear an oath defending the constitution, leading ministers such as Strotha , Bonin and Waldersee to be criticized by either the king or the parliament, depending on their political views. The army's budget had to be approved by the Prussian House of Representatives . Novels and memoirs glorifying the army, especially its involvement in the Napoleonic Wars, began to be published to sway public opinion. The defeat at Olmütz of
14520-595: Was ultimately considered too complicated for issue to soldiers and was supplanted by the Springfield Model 1861 , a conventional muzzle loading rifle. During the American Civil War, the bolt-action Palmer carbine was patented in 1863, and by 1865, 1000 were purchased for use as cavalry weapons. The French Army adopted its first bolt-action rifle, the Chassepot rifle , in 1866 and followed with
14641-644: Was used by Norway, Denmark, and briefly the United States. It is unusual among bolt-action rifles in that is loaded through a gate on the right side of the receiver, and thus can be reloaded without opening the bolt. The Norwegian and Danish versions of the Krag have two locking lugs, while the American version has only one. In all versions, the bolt handle itself serves as an emergency locking lug. The Krag's major disadvantage compared to other bolt-action designs
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